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The first of these two pieces started life as one of my not exactly series, but better described as a group of works based on players of musical instruments. Most of the individuals are women, and one day a woman with red hair playing the flute came into my mind.

I like rendering my drawings as relief prints – showing the carving too. There is something in this which seems to combine the flat image with movement and even three dimensionality, I find. In any case, I like the effect, so have been using it a lot. The digital graphics can also add to the layered look.

For Jazz fluteI wanted her hair to be red, and the whole atmosphere to be a warm and sunny one. The fact that I have a friend who plays the flute and who loves the sun may have influenced this desire. So I tried out printing the lino block on yellow tissue paper which had been crushed once then flattened (adding more random elements with a batik-y feel). I think she looks good even starkly thus in the initial image which was scanned.

The digital work gave her the red hair, the green dress, and the pastel scattered background from my ‘background’ digital files – much used many times before, and once I was happy with the image I printed this out onto a prepared A3 sheet of cotton lawn.

I am really happy with the effect of the yellow rather than white base, and I am now adding the final layer of stitching with fine silk threads.

In the case of Ginkgo riderthe final image came about through trial and error. When learning to print collagraphs one of my attempts used leaves. The image of that attempt I thought might be worth chopping up digitally to use as elements in a future piece.

One of the great advantages of scanning at a high resolution, then cropping is that I’m not limited to the scale of the physical piece of paper. The ginkgo leaf was its actual size on the print – as can be seen in relation to the stamps; but I am able to render its looks much more appropriately sculptural with a crop.

Turned round the sweep of the stem and the fan of the leaf made me think of kites and windsurfers,… although a sail is usually above the sailor my thoughts took me to a rider – someone who would be swept off on top, holding the mast, so to speak. The digital processing in this case simply added the red rider. The rest of the image is a high resolution scan of the cropped print. This will also be printed onto A3 prepared cotton lawn, and more colour will be added with thread when I start stitching.

As with most pieces, Quiet work started as a doodle destined for lino cutting. She was printed while I was experimenting with the use of handmade papers prepared for inkjet printing. As she has such a large empty background – necessarily so – I used a photograph with faint texture and pale colour. (A close-up snap of the Serpentine pavilion which is now at Hauser and Wirth Somerset.)

The print came out well, and after I had scanned it I put it up in my print kitchen. But in order to stitch the piece I thought that more colour was needed, so I played around for a bit before printing the image onto cotton.

The balance of visual weight had to be at the base of the image, so I decided to use a different stitch with the leaves to try to achieve that. Also important is her hair, so more pattern detail was stitched into that. The background, however had to be kept separate and airy, so I used a seed stitch – and I’m still not completely happy with that. But it’s done now, and overall I’m pleased.

All this pondering how or whether to use the felted knitwear I have has got me thinking through the ways I make work anyway. I know that I always have to have work to think about – I always have done. It is what motivates my living. I have to have mental occupation almost all of the time – for instance, I cannot often watch television or listen to the radio without also doing, making, or thinking about something else. Creative outcomes arise from all the input; the curiosity, the pursuit of threads tugged by the curiosity, thinking, and of course seeing – paying attention.

This was also true when I was occupied with publishing, but with a large and fundamental difference from what I do now. When I was for instance orchestrating the creation of a book other people’s work, wishes, and money were concerned. I worked with colleagues who had various expectations of and influences on the decisions I made. I commissioned the work: writing (although I did write a few myself if I wanted to commission a particular artist who had no particular subject in mind), artwork, production, sales – and then of course the consumers also played a huge and vital part. With books for children the parents, librarians, and teachers comprise the first level of consumers.

When I left publishing and was thinking about being creative for myself, it was with notional consumers in mind that I started. I thought I saw a gap in the market for a kind of knitwear – but quickly it became obvious that that was not the right path for me. I carried the thought of consumers with me when I then combined my hobbies of painting pictures and stitching, hoping perhaps to find galleries which would carry my work. I had sold some paintings through a gallerist friend in the USA, and a couple of galleries did take my early stitchings – but over the years I have learned that my work is an acquired taste, galleries have to make consistent money, and besides, there are now just so many makers existing and emerging whose work is more appealing, instantly attractive, or fashionable. Perhaps my work is just not good enough.

But it is more than good for me. It is taking years to get out of the mindset that developed a successful publishing career, to adjust to a state that is neither paid employment nor hobby, but is a kind of manifestation of being. But as such it does not seem to fit comfortably into any labelled box. ‘Twas ever thus: many years ago even at Oxford University Press where I began my publishing career I was labelled an administrative anomaly, in this case because my responsibilities straddled both the schools and tertiary markets.

Although for convenience I have so far put myself in the textile artist box, I do not think that wholly appropriate, despite using cloth and stitching. Printing is at the heart of what I do, but I am not really a conventional printmaker. Collage, the gathering of divers elements is also fundamental to what I do, but somehow does not wholly describe my practice. Everything goes towards the way I want the work to look, and the simple stitch is at the heart of it in two ways.

First, and essential, it is my handling of the cloth. It is a long slow process which has been with me since early childhood when I sat amongst older generations, making cross stitch cloths. When I saw Kantha cloths I realised how powerful the simple running stich could be for me. I have to be a-making with my hands. It helps my mind to clarify, to digest, to make connections, ….

The stitching might be described as a kind of colouring in, but it is so much more than that, despite being simple. When used with wadding (batting) it creates a bas relief. It emphasises, it provides a flow, and it presents a kind of subtle catching of the eye with colour and shape. On my Soliloquy project I have decided to keep it muted with the first top stitching before I join the panels and then quilt the whole.

Soliloquy (detail of work in progress)

With the couple of pieces I’ve explored with felt again the simple stitch I think works well – in Winter sun with the simple outline of the felt itself – and leaves room to appreciate the subtle pattern in that felt,

Winter sun (2017, detail)

and in Cathedral (below) the simple stitching will I hope calm the somewhat (deliberately off register) chaotic screenprinted fused collage.

Cathedral (detail of work in progress)

Regarding the use of the felt – you perhaps can see in the full photo of Plunge that I have used a scan of weaving (my first effort with a backstrap loom and knitting yarn!). The actual weaving – or any felt would have been inappropriate there because of the importance of the relative flatness of the elements making up the image.

When I first retired from publishing it was knitting which attracted me as a possible activity. I had long been a hand knitter, but for some reason I decided to learn to use a knitting machine and designed a range of garments. For a few years I attended craft fairs, and some people loved my work – but not enough. I enjoyed the designing of the garments, the designing of the knit patterns, the choosing of the glorious yarns, … but I did not at all enjoy the selling, and the knitting itself was becoming boring. So I stopped.

I gave away the many cones of beautiful Shetland wool, but have not yet been able to part with the bits of garments with which I was left. I felted a lot of them, thinking that surely I must think of something satisfying to do with them. I have a tub full which I look at from time to time, but have until now not thought of anything I even wanted to try.

Then I decided to try cutting out familiar figure shapes from my work. I took my much-loved woman with fish on a dish, and was relatively pleased with the result so far. They also have the advantage of working in either direction – there is no fixed front or back.

I cut out another previously used shape – and I rather liked using the rib as the base in both cases. I also came up with a design to incorporate the felt shape(s) with cotton and hand stitching so that it much more resembles a piece of my work. I’m going to see if I can come up with more designs like the one on the right before I decide that this is a good idea, and before I finally decide whether to ditch the felt – with a sigh.

I have not had anything to write about for some time. Truth to tell I don’t really have much of substance to say now. I have been puttering along with bits and pieces mostly, with only one real project to move forward. I have cut several lino plates, both for the project called Soliloquy, and for other ideas.

I have not yet proofed these plates, but I have printed three of the others, and they are now ready to stitch as small pieces.

Seeking a perfect print is not my goal – or at least I am looking for a print perfect for my purposes. With the few exceptions of print as end product, I have to bear in mind that stitch is to be added without looking superficial – or even worse, excessive. For this reason I look at the proof stage of my relief printing as a possible source of material to progress. I am looking out for happy accidents which make the image speak louder in its own voice.

Sometimes I am compelled to put (at least) two elements together: such as this figure

and this background (street furniture in Oxford),

which was altered thus when I thought of the figure.

The idea was developed when I had taken the idea of a grid as a theme/exercise – and so I elaborated onto the body.

This became the template for my relief plate, as I want the movement to be to the right.

The proof onto plain paper came out boldly.

I had digitally printed the background onto 42gsm Murakumo Kozo Select White, which is actually cream-ish white. Perhaps because of my being aware of the thin-ness of the paper I did not press enough – I hand burnish my prints – and the result was much fainter:

I am delighted with the ghost-like qualities, and although I shall most likely print another, bolder version, I shall still consider the possibility of taking this proof forward to stitch. The original design was one of a happy conjunction of elements, but now I think I might be approaching ambiguity of meaning as well – which would be a much more desirable outcome.

The problem with being focussed on finishing one piece in slow stitch mode is that meantime other things pile up, mostly because my mind keeps ticking over. Well, the very nature of the slow stitching is that it provides the ideal environment for much thought!

Anyway, deadline stitching done with just sleeves to sew onto the piece I must now concentrate on progressing through the designs which have accumulated in my files meantime. I am using printable cotton lawn at present, and the result is a muted version of what I see on my screen. This is OK, and have allowed for it. The two I’m starting with are Building an argument (above) and Point by point. I shall also use cotton threads, with the addition in Building an argument of gold for the grid.

I already have a pile of designs waiting to be cut out of vinyl for relief printing, but of course I seem to just keep churning them out. The first one, Giggles, is now a definite template and added to the teetering pile, while the second is still in ponder limbo.